Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - General Baldur's Gate 4

The plus here is that Larian is essentially creating a 5e Engine. Much like the Infinity Engine spawned an entire genre of games in the late 90s/early 00s based around RTWP, party-management, 2D world exploration, and an isometric perspective, this engine offers the potential for diverse experiences with Turn-based Combat, story cinematics, 3D world exploration, and a quasi-isometric perspective. Independent of what you think about the execution of Baldur's Gate 3, the raw ingredients for other 5e experiences are already here, in a very well-polished engine (relative to its competitors). Supposing BG3 comes out and Larian catches flak for a handful of game elements or mechanics, it is entirely possible they might switch directions in some areas. Providing a new setting keeps the content fresh, granting a new experience while using the same engine.

Then, there's the potential for modding. If Larian ever decides to provide greater support to modding, making games in new settings would provide a wealth of tools and assets for the modding community. Planescape: Torment is widely regarded as one of, if not the best cRPG of the 90s-00s era. Its setting and method of presenting itself is quite distinct from games set in the Forgotten Realms, which was a factor in its appeal (though its writing more being the main appeal). Different settings provide new opportunities for twists on the base experience.

Let's keep in mind that Larian's team has grown ten times over since the Divinity: Original Sin 1 days, and that they have a greater income as well. A google search says that they grew their employee count by 26% last year, they have an annual revenue of 87.4 million, and apparently Tencent owns 30%. That's a lot of money and a lot of talent devoted specifically to the prospect of a DnD video game experience with previous experience in the space.